“I am Loki of Asgard and I am burdened with glorious purpose” Loki utters these words in the first Avengers film, sharing a belief in his pre-ordained right to power. At the risk of being a spoiler, it doesn’t end well for him. The use of the word ‘burdened’ is used (I think) because Loki […]
All you want for Christmas (literally) Adapted from my 2023 end-of-year speech to High School students and staff… As I walked around the school this week, I was uplifted by the excitement from staff and students in the high school. I also could not help but notice the thousands of gifts that were being carried […]
This weekend, we put up our Christmas tree. We revelled in our work, turned up the music, ate mince pies and drank mulled wine (and blackcurrant juice!)—one of my favourite days of the year. We always put the lights on first. Two sets of lights were untangled, bulbs checked, and batteries replaced. Tinsel is no […]
I’m an oxymoron. As we tried to leave the house this morning, my daughter told me she was “nearly done” [with her hair]. Actually, we were trying to get out to the school “Fun Run“. And as much as I like to promote physical health and well-being, these are two words that I question should […]
Relief, trepidation… I always approach the gift of the Summer Holidays with a mix of emotions – excitement, of course, but also with relief and trepidation. Relief that the annual milestone has been reached, another year has been notched, and I am one step closer to returning “home”, wherever or whatever that might mean nowadays. Trepidation because […]
Noticeship /ˈnəʊtɪs/ʃɪp/ n.informal. The quality or ability that elevates a person or leader to intentionally see something or someone. Resolutions As is my way this time of year, I sat down with my thoughts this morning to contemplate the new year ahead. For much of my early life, this involved me finding somewhere to sit […]
“To be noticed is to be loved.” ― Ali Smith, There but for the It starts with a belief system Making children feel noticed is arguably the most important thing we can do in schools. Why? Because my belief system is this: Noticing is the root of belonging. And belonging is the root of happy and […]
In preparation for our recent CIS and WASC (joint) preparatory evaluation visitors, I felt our school adopted a “just right” Goldilocks approach to proceedings – a lot of hard work, paced calmly and thoughtfully by a core team who distributed much of the preparatory work in a meaningful and purposeful way with a high degree […]
I’m convinced that the question of “what can we take away” has been a priority for school leaders since (at least) the Industrial Age. It has been a central theme in all my time in education, and I imagine it transcends many other work sectors too. How do we find ourselves constantly in this situation? […]
Only when I started my holiday did I realise how much I needed it. “Not cool, dad” Waiting patiently for a ride on the bumper cars with the kids, I noticed a group of young teenagers jumping the queue ahead of us and then being allowed to get away with it by the clearly intimidated […]
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